ViaCyte to Present at the 25th Piper Jaffray Healthcare Conference

SAN DIEGO, Dec. 2, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- ViaCyte, Inc., a leading regenerative medicine company developing a transformative cell therapy for the treatment of diabetes, today announced it will present at the 2013 Piper Jaffray Healthcare Conference on Tuesday, December 3, 2013 at 1:30 PM EST / 10:30 PM PST at the New York Palace Hotel.

During the presentation, Paul Laikind, ViaCyte's President and Chief Executive Officer, will provide a corporate overview of the Company's strategy and its development activity related to VC-01™ combination product, its stem cell-derived, cell therapy product that the Company believes could transform the way patients with Type 1 diabetes manage their disease. ViaCyte is planning to file an IND and initiate clinical evaluation of the VC-01 product in patients with Type 1 diabetes around the middle of next year.

The VC-01 combination product is comprised of pancreatic progenitor cells contained in a proprietary device that is designed to be inserted under the skin. Upon implant, the product is expected to vascularize as the cells further differentiate to islet-like structures that generate insulin and other expected regulatory factors in response to blood glucose levels, essentially providing patients with a replacement for the cells lost as a result of the disease.

Dr. Laikind said, "We are very excited about the progress we have made towards a break through therapy that could transform the way patients with Type 1 diabetes manage their disease. We also believe it could be an important treatment for patients with Type 2 diabetes that use insulin to help manage their disease. We look forward to reviewing our work and describing our plans for clinical development."

About ViaCyteViaCyte, a private company that has emerged as a leader in the field of regenerative medicine, is currently focused on developing a novel cell therapy for the treatment of diabetes. The Company's lead product is based on the production of pancreatic progenitors derived from human pluripotent stem cells. These cells are implanted in a durable and retrievable encapsulation device called the Encaptra® drug delivery system. Once implanted and matured, these cells are designed to secrete insulin and other regulatory factors in response to blood glucose levels. ViaCyte's goal for this potentially transformative diabetes product is long term insulin independence without immune suppression, and without risk of hypoglycemia and other diabetes-related complications.

ViaCyte is headquartered in San Diego, California with additional operations in Athens, Georgia. The Company is funded in part by CIRM and JDRF.